coronavirus
USDA adds vendors, extends others as food box program enters second round
The government will spend $1.16 billion in July and August to buy surplus food at the farm level, package it, and donate it to food banks and other organizations for distribution to hungry Americans. In announcing the second round of the Farmers to Families Food Box program on Wednesday, the USDA said it was extending the contracts of "select vendors" from the first round, adding "a few" new vendors, and dropping some others. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
As processing plants reopen, more meat for Americans to eat
The faster-than-expected recovery in slaughter production has almost neutralized the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the U.S. meat supply, said the government on Thursday. The USDA estimated that Americans will consume an average of 220.2 pounds of red meat and poultry this year — more than half a pound a day apiece. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Beef prices soar, food inflation is highest in more than eight years
Food prices rose sharply for the second month in a row, with beef recording its largest one-month increase ever, as the U.S. food inflation rate hit 4 percent in May, said the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Wednesday. It is the highest rate since January 2012. While food prices surged, the overall U.S. inflation rate for the past 12 months was a tiny 0.1 percent. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Indictments could be a sign of increased antitrust enforcement in farm sector
After years of failed attempts to draw attention to market concentration in the meat sector, farmers are cautiously optimistic about federal investigations into alleged antitrust violations in the chicken and beef industries. And grand jury indictments of four chicken industry executives could be a sign of more antitrust action to come, says a former attorney at the Department of Justice. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Meat plants should slow the line, separate workers, say unions
The government should order meatpackers to slow the work pace at typically crowded processing plants and separate workers to reduce the risk of coronavirus outbreaks, said two labor unions on Wednesday. During a House hearing, the president of one of the unions said that "some responsible employers, like Cargill and Safeway, have done what is right," while companies such as Amazon, Walmart, and Kroger have not. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Farm groups ask for billions more in coronavirus aid
Although the USDA has distributed only 9 percent of the $16 billion in coronavirus aid earmarked for agriculture, three farm and ranch groups asked lawmakers for more on Wednesday. The American Farm Bureau Federation sent a five-page wish list to Congress that included a $38 billion increase in USDA spending power and a guarantee that undocumented farmworkers will not be targeted by immigration agents during the pandemic. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Coronavirus concerns mount as Bristol Bay salmon season prepares to open
Two months ago, local leaders in southwest Alaska’s Bristol Bay begged the state’s governor to consider canceling the commercial sockeye salmon season. They feared that Covid-19 would spread through the region’s small villages, which have scant health resources. Despite those concerns, preparations for the Bristol Bay fishery, which opens at the end of the month, are barreling ahead, and some 10,000 fishermen and processing plant workers from across the state, the country, and the world are set to descend on the region. But now, as Covid-19 cases are growing across the state — as of June 9, it had recorded more than 600 cases — there is concern that the $5.2 billion industry could be in jeopardy, writes Miranda Weiss in FERN’s latest story. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
How did Europe avoid a Covid-19 crisis at its meatpacking plants?
In the United States, Covid-19 has been sweeping through meatpacking plants, infecting more than 24,000 workers and killing at least 92 of them. Those figures are more than nine-times larger than at meat plants in Europe, though the U.S. industry has only a third more workers. Bridget Huber explains how Europe largely avoided the crisis sweeping the U.S. industry in FERN's latest story. <strong> (No paywall) </strong>
Huge federal payments will make up 36 percent of farm income this year
Iowa expands offer of hog disposal aid
Ranchers, labor union call for stronger Covid-19 protections for meatpacking workers
As Covid-19 spreads in meatpacking plants across the country, a number of groups representing ranchers and farmers have joined with a key labor union to call for stronger protections for meatpacking workers. The alliance comes as the tally of meat industry workers who have contracted the disease approaches 25,000, even as companies restrict information about outbreaks at their facilities. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Global cotton stockpiles rise as pandemic curtails usage
Between stay-at-home orders and massive job losses due to the coronavirus, consumers are shunning apparel purchases, with the impact being felt all the way to the farm level, said the International Cotton Advisory Council on Monday. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
There are holes in USDA’s Food Box, say congressional Democrats
When Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue talks about hunger relief during the pandemic, he puts the spotlight on the USDA's Farmers to Families Food Box program. He took part in three Food Box events last week and is scheduled to speak at one in Lakeland, Florida, on Monday. Meanwhile, Democrats in the House and Senate question if the donation program is a fair and efficient way to help families. <strong> (No paywall) </strong>
Beef and pork exports run ahead of 2019 pace despite pandemic
Exports of U.S.-grown pork and beef are flowing at a higher volume than in 2019, with a sales value of $4.86 billion through April. Strong meat exports are a sign that the United States is a reliable supplier worldwide despite coronavirus disruptions in meatpacking plants, said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue on Thursday. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Provide free meals for all students, say school food directors
The USDA should extend all school food waivers through the end of the coming school year and make all meals free to students, said the School Nutrition Association in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue on Thursday. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Five states get one-third of initial coronavirus payments
Farmers and ranchers have received $545 million in the first batch of coronavirus relief payments, said the USDA on Thursday. One-third of that money went to producers in five states: Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Texas. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Amid Covid-19 bottleneck in meat industry, PRIME Act gains support
Closures at meatpacking plants due to outbreaks of Covid-19 have sent shockwaves through the livestock industry. With thousands of confirmed cases among plant workers and operations stuttering across the country, the backlog of animals awaiting slaughter is growing and farmers are running out of options. The bottleneck promises to have long-term consequences for American ranchers and is injecting new urgency into calls for relaxing federal regulations that limit small farmers’ access to livestock processing.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Record USDA support flowing, but farmers say more federal assistance will be needed